Continuing our collaboration with Jakarta Fashion Week, British Council are pleased to support UK-based designer Derek Lawlor's participation this season with Millinery by Margaret O'Connor presented as part of our UK / ID catwalk show also featuring Indonesia designers SOE Jakarta and Tertia. 

The presentation of Derek's work builds on past projects and UK participation in Jakarta Fashion Week, including catwalk shows by emerging UK-based designers Kitty Joseph, Ed Marler and Richard Malone as well as the Fashion Machine  live fashion image-making collaborations, Sustainable Fashion Forums, Graduate Fashion Week and London College of Fashion graduate collaborations and visits by Jakarta Fashion Week's Indonesia Fashion Forward designers to London Fashion Week. 

Our continuing collaboration with Jakarta Fashion Week aims to highlight emerging practices in sustainability and fashion futures in both the UK and Indonesia, while supporting the development of wider critical fashion practice, including filmmaking, photography, styling and writing. Derek's work, known for its intricate textiles and crossovers between art and design, push questions about the possibility of the fashion industry. Shown alongside designers SOE Jakarta, known for their innovative collaborations with traditional Indonesian textile artisans translated into sportswear, Derek's participation in Jakarta Fashion Week shows a continuing dialogue between UK and Indonesian designers around the future of fashion. 

Derek's visit also coincides with the UK/ID Festival 2017, part of the UK/Indonesia 2016-18 season ,which showcased work and collaborations between artists, creatives, makers and producers around the theme Come Together. Derek collaborated with Indonesian fashion film portal Visionare and leading Indonesian model Asmara Abigail in the UK/ID Festival Creative Lab, producing a new fashion film for the Visionare platform. 

If you want to see more about Derek's visit to Indonesia and collaboration with Visionare, visit his instagram. 

About Derek Lawlor

Derek Lawlor has an intricate and intuitive understanding of textiles on which he has founded his brand and consultancy. His womenswear infuses unique fabrications of knitted material with his innovative signature knitwear techniques. Based in London his atelier pushes the possibilities of knitwear, producing collections seasonally alongside creating bespoke showpieces for exhibitions.

Lawlor has received a wide range of international press with features in Vogue, Italian Vogue, The Telegraph, The Times, Elle and Dazed. An alumnus of Central Saint Martin’s BA and MA courses, he now tutors on the Universities Textile Design course.

Alongside his collections, Lawlor also produces exclusive pieces for editorial, music videos, printed publications and exhibitions. His clients include The Royal Ballet, Leona Lewis, V V Brown, Katy B and other luminaries from the music industry. Through his atelier, Lawlor also works with private clients on made-to-measure and commissioned garments.

Lawlor’s interest in exploring the crossover between art and design has led him to collaborate with artists and illustrators, including Hannah Morgan, Alec Stang and Isobel Shirley. His garments have also appeared in books and museums worldwide.

As part of his commitment to exploring the possibilities of his industry, Derek Lawlor provides a design and textile consultancy service for designers, brands and corporate clients. Consultancy services include fabric and product development. His client list includes Marimekko, Jayne Pierson, Nina Skarra as well as luxury design house 1508 London.

Most recently he has collaborated with Natalie B Coleman and Ethologie By Jasper Garvida.

 www.dereklawlor.com

Ida 2017

Renowned for his innovative textiles and fashion practice, Derek Lawlor has an intricate and intuitive understanding of fabrics. For this current collection, Lawlor has looked retrospectively to his archive for inspiration. The output named Ida 2017 is a new direction based on the invigoration of techniques developed through several years in practice. Pushing knitwear in unconventional directions and exploring new territories, this is Lawlor's first time showing at Guangzhou Fashion Week.

Fundamentally viewing the fabric as a canvas on which to work, Lawlor infuses unique constructions of knitted material with his innovative signature fabric embellishment, while his techniques inform the shape and silhouette. The knitted lace work forms panels that create the garments structure interspersed with hand crafted lines reminiscent of Art Nouveau and Art Deco sensibilities. As well as building on his archive, this collection also presents an exploration in silhouette. Lawlors play on exaggerated length and elongated scale create new and experimental proportions.

Ida 2017 AW17 collection questions the properties of the garment itself creating a framework from which he re imagines the female body.

Lawlor collaborated with Irish millinery designer Margaret O' Connor to create headpieces which respond to the collection through bespoke fabrication, structure an form

About Margaret O'Connor

Margaret was trained by some of the ‘leading lights of the Millinery industry’ such as Philip Tracey, Noel Stewart, Yvette Jelfs, Kristen Scott and Sarah Cant.

While filled with the landscape of her hometown of Boston, Tubber in County Clare, O’Connor interprets Irish tradition and historicism through her own personal awakening.

Her creations have attracted the attention and been worn by a broad range of celebrities, ranging from Lady Gaga to Finbar Furey.

Margaret’s collection range from the eclectic haute couture to commercial pieces through to event/occasion wear.

www.margaretoconnormillinery.com